A letter was sent to Donald Trump’s treasurer Bradley Crate and Republican Senate Candidate Matt Rosendale from the Missoula County Commissioners yesterday, November 1. The commissioners are asking for money to help pay for Donald Trump’s visit to Missoula on October 18th. The letter reads in part:

“The visit incurred Personnel costs to the Missoula County Sheriff’s Office and the Office of Emergency Management totaling $12,922.82. Missoula County Public Safety agencies will always ensure the well-being of its citizens during large public events. Events hosted by political campaigns are becoming more common and currently local property tax payers shoulder the burden of these costs. Please assist us in covering these costs and limiting the burden on our property owners.”

Originally, Commissioner Jean Curtiss mentioned that Rosendale would be the target of the letter, but the commissioners appear to have backed away from that effort and he was only CC’d. Although thousands of people visited Missoula for the rally, there is no effort in the letter to calculate the amount of money pumped into the local economy during the event.

The letter was signed by all three Missoula County Commissioners, all of which happen to be Democrats. While many fellow Democrats are cheering the letter which was shared on Commissioner Dave Strohmaier’s Facebook page, many Republicans are viewing it as a partisan ploy.